Jane Austen's Letters [Paperback]

Jane Austen (Author), Deirdre Le Faye (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 1997

Jane Austen's letters afford a unique insight into the daily life of the novelist: intimate and gossipy, observant and informative--they read much like the novels themselves. They bring alive her family and friends, her surroundings and contemporary events with a freshness unparalleled in modern biographies. Above all we recognize the unmistakable voice of the author of such novels as Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. We see the shift in her writing from witty and amusing descriptions of the social life of town and country, to a thoughtful and constructive tone while writing about the business of literary composition.
R.W. Chapman's ground-breaking edition of the collected Letters first appeared in 1932, and a second edition followed twenty years later. Now in this third edition of Jane Austen's Letters, Deirdre Le Faye has added new material that has come to light since 1952, and re-ordered the letters into their correct chronological sequence. She has provided discreet and full annotation to each letter, including its provenance, and information on the watermarks, postmarks, and other physical details of the manuscripts, together with new biographical, topographical, and general indexes. Teachers, students, and fans of Jane Austen, at all levels, will find remarkable insight into one of the most popular novelists ever.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Jane Austen famously labeled her literary ambit a "little bit (two inches wide) of ivory." Luckily, her personal travels and those of her family were slightly more extensive, otherwise we should be without her letters. Not only should every Janeite possess them, but also every connoisseur of correspondence. Austen's wit is ubiquitous--even though some protest it edges into waspishness. E. M. Forster, for example, described the letters between Austen and her beloved sister, Cassandra, as "the whinnying of harpies."

On September 18, 1796, she tells Cassandra, "What dreadful Hot weather we have!--It keeps one in a continual state of Inelegance.--If Miss Pearson should return with me, pray be careful not to expect too much Beauty..." The dashes and capitalization alone make one long for the days before stylistic rules had so cemented. As for the sentiments! Austen paces her monologues to perfection, making the comic and ironic most out of the smallest incidents. Still, her frustration does occasionally emerge. "I am forced to be abusive," she implodes to Cassandra, "for want of a subject, having nothing really to say." Jane Austen has more than enough to say for lovers of literature and the cultural pinprick. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"They give glances and hints at her life from the age of 20 to her deaht at 41, the years in which she wrote her six imperishable books....Deirdre Le Faye's new edition is necessary and very welcome; no one was better qualified, no one could have done it so well."--Independent on Sunday

"Most will enjoy reading Austen unbuttoned, in an unfussy and intelligently edited volume."--The Observer

"Le Faye re-orders the letters chronologically and provides usefull background information. She also includes previously unpublished material."--The Express

"Deirdre Le Faye's new edition is necessary and very welcome; no one was better qualified, no one could have done it so well."--Independent on Sunday

"We waited a long time for the new edition. It was well worth the wait."--Jane Austen Society of North America

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Product Details

• Paperback: 672 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 3 edition (April 3, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0192832972
• ISBN-13: 978-0192832979
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,359 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must For All Janeites!, March 27, 2000

By 

Dianne (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jane Austen's Letters (Paperback)

As a Jane Austen, Regency period and history fan I loved this book. Highly recommend it for fans of any of the above. We get to peep into Jane Austen's real life and real love for her family in the wonderful letters to her sister and her friends. We learn about the period's social mores, what they did for entertainment, the joys and losses of living in the late 1700's/early 1800's. The author carefully explains geographical names and the intricate web of family and friends in the back of the book. I read it with two bookmarks to keep track, but it's easy to read. A must to round out your Jane Austen library.

60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute must for Austen fans, February 18, 2001

By 

A. Woodley "Patroness, Janeites, the Austen list" (New Zealand) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jane Austen's Letters (Paperback)

Proving that Austen was as fun and readable in her everyday letters as she was in her novels. These letters (about 160 of them) are great fun to read. The biting wit of her novels is clearly evident here.

As pretty much most people know Jane Austen was incredibly close to her sister Cassandra and most of these letters are from Jane to Cassandra while they were separated. After Jane's death Cassandra destroyed goodness knows how many of Jane's letters and all of her own - so this small collection is all that is left - along with some to her neices and other family members.

The collection was first put together in the 1930's by Chapman, but Le Faye has uncovered a few more since then (as I understand it).

The book is great value for money. Le Faye has done a phenomemal job in providing all the support information you will need to read and understand any aspect of the letters. They are footnoted clearly. There is a biographical and Topographical index in here - along with a chronology of Jane's life, and a chronology of the letters themselves - and if all else fails there is a comprehensive index.

For the history buff there is a great amount of really useful everyday infomration - for instance in 1813 apples were scarce in the country and cost 1 pound 5 shillings a sack. And insight into Jane herself - in April 1811 she is searching for a novel called 'Self Control' but says "I am always afraid of finding a clever novel too clever." Perhaps something that guided her own writing.

Over 600 pages of great value reading, pure pleasure and wealth of information.

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for all fans, May 8, 2002

By 

Lisa L. Hansen (Køge, Denmark) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jane Austen's Letters (Paperback)

This collection of Jane Austens letters is a must for all fans who would like a peek inside the mind of the author. It is the most extensive collection to date and Le Faye has done quite a lot to make it as accessible as possible. It features all of the surviving letters from Jane Austen to her sister Cassandra plus some letters to some of her brothers, a niece, etc. It also includes three letters from Cassandra to various relatives from the time immediately after Jane Austens death and so also shows Jane Austen from another persons perspective. The only drawback of this book is that all the notes are in the back, arranged by the number of each letter, and so you find yourself flipping back and forth quite a lot but it is an annoyance well worth putting up with.

I have read quite a few bibliographies on Jane Austen but there is no competing with her own words. If you have any kind of interest in Jane Austen as a person then you should definitely get this book.